It Burns Like Wildfire
by ItsThatGirlMe
Summary: Post NM. The Cullens don't come back and Jacob ghosts Bella after becoming a wolf. Bella changes completely. She gets new friends, joins a gang and is overall on self-destruct mode. Then the Cullens come back. Will they save Bella from her new life or admit she's changed too much? And what happens when, in the mix of it all, a rival gang targets Bella?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N I've wanted to write another version of this well-told tale for a while. The Crazy Ones is still my priority story so the updates on this one will be a slightly longer gap compared to that one.**

 **Summary: Post NM. The Cullens left and never came back. Jacob became a wolf and cut Bella out of his life completely. Now, 6 months later, Bella falls in with a bad crew. She undergoes a complete change and joins a gang called the Wildfires. Bella is now a changed woman. What would happen if the Cullens came back to Forks and saw the new Bella? Would they be able to save her from her self-destructive life? Or would they accept that she isn't who she used to be? And what might happen if a rival gang was threatening her life in the mix?**

 **Like I said, this is my secondary story but once The Crazy Ones is finished this one will take priority. I hope you enjoy.**

Bella's POV

 _Hey, it's Jake. Leave a message._

The familiar voice message sounded in my ears and I hung up. This must have been the tenth time I'd called today. He never picked up anymore. After our confrontation in La Push where he told me to leave and not come back, our friendship seemed to dissolve.

I didn't have any hard feelings, but I completely hated the fact that the one person I could depend on to close the hold _they_ left in my heart had abandoned me. Just like they all seemed to do.

I threw the phone onto my bed with a bit too much force and trudged down the stairs to start dinner. Charlie was lounging on the sofa watching sports and he looked up as I passed the room.

"Any luck with Jake, Bella?" he called, concerned.

I shook my head then realized he wouldn't see it. "No. I guess he doesn't want to be my friend anymore." I sighed and pulled out some ingredients from the fridge.

"Want me to take a trip to talk to Billy tomorrow?"

I grimaced. "No, that's okay." It was a lie, of course, but I didn't want to involve my father in my personal problems. I was too old to have him fight for me.

I was too old to need anyone to fight for me, really. I needed to learn how to fight for myself.

Once dinner was cooked and eaten in silence in front of the TV I escaped to my room to fetch my things for a shower. Perhaps the hot water would sooth me. I doubted it, but it was always worth a try.

"I'm gonna take a shower, Dad," I called down before closing the door gently.

Once the hot water hit my skin, I relaxed my muscles into the flow, trying to clear my mind. Jacob.

What was I going to do? I'd lost another person I truly cared about. No, I hadn't lost him, he left me. Just like Edward had. What exactly was so wrong with me that everyone in my life wants to leave?

And the kicker is that Jacob had said almost exactly what Edward had when he left. _I'm not good for you_.

I winced and felt my eyes fog up. Was that the new code for 'I'm over you'?

As hard as I tried, I could never understand. In a way, it made sense. Why on earth would Edward want to be with someone like me? And why would Jacob want to put up with my sullen attitude and unwillingness?

The tears were flowing freely now. I turned the water off and focused on my breathing. I wrapped the towel around my body and used my hand to wipe the mist off of the mirror so I could brush my hair.

I looked at my face. It was still wet and my hair clung to it's sides. My face looked thinner, understandable since I hadn't been eating much since Jake ghosted me. My eyes were sunken in from lack of sleep and I looked deadly pale. My skin alone might qualify me as a vampire but my hideous features would immediately kick me out of the running.

I completely understood why everyone left. I was such a mess. I didn't even love myself, how could I expect anyone else to?

Before I knew it, my fist collided with the glass and my crumbling face was now split into ten copies. The pieces fell to the sink and some hit the floor. I fell with them, ignoring the pain in my knuckles.

I shifted until I was against the wall next to the sink and the sobs escaped. I'd never fully broken down and let myself feel it all in totality, now it was hitting me all at once. The sobs grew louder and there was a knock on the door.

"Bella?!" Charlie's worried voice called from behind it. "Bella, I heard something break? Are you alright? Did you get hurt?"

On top of it all I was hurting my father. The only person who had stuck by me no matter how much I'd hurt him in the past. Why did I destroy everything I loved? I couldn't bare it anymore. I reached out and lifted a long shard of glass from the tiles.

Not thinking through the pain, I brought it to my inner forearm. Once long drag later, the blood began to spill out. It was a slow flowing of liquid but the pain was there, overshadowed by the ache in my chest.

"Bella, if you don't open this door I'm breaking it down! Please, say something!"

I couldn't quite compose myself, but I took a few deep breaths so I could answer with a steady voice.

"Yeah, Dad, I'm okay," I call back unconvincingly. "I slipped on water and fell into the mirror. My arm got cut but it's nothing too serious."

"Do you want me to take you to the hospital?"

"No, I'll be alright." Another sob escaped as I pulled myself onto my feet and secured the towel around my body.

"Dammit, Bella, I hope you're decent."

After two hard thuds against the door, the lock broke with a loud click and Charlie was suddenly in the room.

His eyes travelled from the mirror to the sink to the floor, where there were a couple of obvious blood puddles.

"Bella?!" I exclaimed panicked. He rushed to my side and grabbed my arm. The cut itself was covered in my blood. I was glad. It would have been easy to tell that it was self-inflicted if it wasn't.

"It's fine, Dad, it doesn't really hurt."

"Bella, come on. You might need stitches. I don't want to risk it."

I tried to smile, but avoided looking directly at his face, fearing the puffy eyes would give my crying away.

"I'm not in pain and it wasn't that deep. The bleeding's already stopping. I'll be fine."

There was a pause before he dropped my arm and stepped back to the door.

"I don't feel good about this, Bells…"

"If it hasn't started scabbing by the morning I'll go to the hospital," I lie. I look back up to the shards still attached to the mirror frame. "I'm sorry about the mirror."

He chuckled nervously. "It's just a mirror, Bells."

I risked looking up at him and saw his attention was already elsewhere.

"Dad, go watch TV or something. I'll clean all this up. I promise I'm fine."

I hate lying to him, but it would be unbearable to tell him the truth – that I was breaking slowly and didn't feel good enough for anything.

"Try to be more careful, Bella," he pleaded, backing out of the room. "Don't worry about the mess. It's late and you have school tomorrow. I'll take care of it in the morning," he called as he made his way back downstairs.

I shut my room door tightly and, after changing into sweats and an old T-shirt, tried to get comfortable in bed. Most of the blood had dried but I couldn't be bothered to wipe it off. I didn't want to deal with the aftermath of my breakdown just yet.

I tried to snuggle under the covers and get comfortable, but peace evaded me.

I was hurting so much. I couldn't keep this up. If I did, I'd be dead in a week. I couldn't let Edward or Jacob kill me.

Before I finally found sleep, I made a silent vow to myself. Never again would I give anyone the power to break me like they did. I could never let Charlie see myself like this.

The only way I would never feel this pain, would be to never feel anything. I had to let all this go. I had to start over. I needed a change.

I closed my eyes and finally accepted the fact that I'd never have the Cullens or Jacob in my life again. I would just have to find a way to be okay with that.

After keeping so many secrets and living lies through the Cullens, I knew I could be a pro at adapting by now. That's all I had to do.

 _Goodbye, Jacob,_ I thought to myself. _Goodbye Edward._

I turned over and tucked myself into my blanket.

 _Goodbye, Bella_.

 **A/N Let me know if it's worth it to continue this story! Please review it means the world to me.**

 **Thank you for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

Bella's POV

When I woke up the next morning, I looked as though I'd been brutally murdered. The blood was dried to crust and covered my arm. My head was pounding and my throat was sore.

I looked at the clock on my bedside table. 6:45. If I didn't get up now I'd risk running late.

I pulled myself off of the bed and stood. I heard the door close downstairs. Charlie must have just left. It was rather early but I could understand why he preferred to stay out of my way these days.

I trudged into the bathroom and saw that Charlie _had_ attempted to clean up my mess. The blood was wiped from the floor and every shard of glass was on a piece of newspaper on the sink countertop. Not a very safe situation. I saw that he had knocked out the glass that was still attached to the mirror frame.

Were it not for the glass on the counter and the blood on my arm, I may not have believed what I'd resorted to the night before. What exactly had come over me? Had I finally just lost the small piece of sanity I had left?

Whatever it was, I knew the feeling was still there. I could snap at any moment. I saw it coming and there was nothing I could really do but ride the wave.

Once I washed all the blood off me and felt something similar to fresh I changed into a long sleeve shirt and jeans and headed downstairs. Only half an hour had passed. I'd still have time to eat but I wasn't hungry.

I grabbed my bag and hopped into the truck. My entire body seemed to ache but it was dull enough to ignore, and also painful enough that it distracted me from the burning emptiness in my chest. For this, I was grateful.

I drove all the way to the school parking lot and realized I was still ten minutes early. What would be the harm in sitting in the truck until the bell rang? I pulled out my iPod and earphones and looked for a song fitted to my mood. I didn't listen to music much these days, but it was a welcome sensation to my ears.

I finally settled on a number by Paul Anka. It was an old song, but he always used emotion in his music, which was what I needed. I needed something emotional. Perhaps it would finally break me and let me feel everything in it's entirety once and for all. The truth was that no matter how bad it was last night, I still felt so bottled up. There was so much inside me that I couldn't let go of.

I was so wrapped up in the music, letting one song immediately follow another and sitting with my eyes closed, I jumped when I heard a rapping on the truck window.

My heart stopped, and it took a few seconds before my eyes adjusted to the person peering in at me.

"Hey, do you have a light?" she asked through the window.

My fear and shock subsided as my manners kicked in. I immediately rolled down the window so we could speak face to face.

"Light?" I asked, furrowing my brow. What was she talking about?

She raised her brow and I suddenly recognized her. She was in my homeroom class last year, but was hardly ever at school. Allison Starky. She was very pretty. Sort of like Alice, but less bubbly and enthusiastic. Her long black hair looked matted from the morning rain and her pale skin seemed to glow in the dreary atmosphere.

She narrowed her dull blue eyes and I realized I was taking longer than I should to respond to her question.

"I don't think so…" I said, trailing off and removing my earphones.

She sighed. "You don't _think_ you have a lighter?"

I blinked. "I definitely don't have a lighter." She rolled her eyes and was about to turn away. This was the first human contact I'd made at school in months and I was desperate to cling to it. "I'm sorry… I guess I'm a little out of it lately."

She turned to face me again and I rolled up the truck window as quickly as I could before jumping out of the trunk. Just then I noticed how empty the parking lot was. I checked my watch. Crap.

"You're late," Allison chimed. "Unless, that was your intention…"

I breathed in deeply. Charlie surely wouldn't care if I missed a day? Especially after my episode yesterday. Hell, he might be pleased that I'm taking a self-care day.

"Yeah," I say, still unsure. "I wasn't really in the mood anyway."

She smirked and took her in fully. I've never properly looked at her or the people she hung out with at school. They always seemed so intimidating to me. It would be obvious why. She was sort in stature but she peered up at me. The look was both curious and menacing and I wasn't sure what to make of it. She wore black leggings under an oversized black shirt and a leather jacket.

Her army boots added at least two inches to her height. She noticed me give her the once over and her face morphed into a glare.

"See something you like?" she snapped, placing her hands on her hips.

I unconsciously nodded but stopped myself and her arms relaxed against her sides. I feared an uncomfortable silence would follow but she was doing a good job and carrying the conversation.

"You dated the Cullen kid, right?" she asked suddenly, her brow furrowing.

Even the outcasts new of my love affair. It shouldn't surprise me; everyone in school knew about the Cullens. I was just in the line of fire. She was still waiting for a response. I needed to retrain myself on how to talk to people, clearly.

"Yes," I said, "I guess you could say that."

"What would _you_ say?" she countered.

I sighed. "It's complicated…" I wasn't in the mood to detail my love affair with a stranger.

This, however, sparked her interest.

"I love a good soapie," she remarked.

Suddenly, she grabbed my hand. Hers was cold, not uncomfortably so, but below average temperature.

"How about you hang out with us today?" she coaxed. "I'm sure you're just _dying_ to get some of that off your chest?"

I didn't have a chance to respond before she was pulling away from my truck with such confidence that anyone would swear we were best friends.

I wordlessly followed her until we reached the end of the lot, where two boys were crouching and watching her tiny body as we approached them.

"Guys, this is…" she trailed off and looked expectantly at me.

"B-Bella," I stuttered nervously.

The two boys stood. I recognized only one of them. The taller one. He wasn't in any of my classes but he hung around outside the cafeteria with Allison sometimes. He was lean and had shaggy black hair. Along with his striking hazel eyes he might be considered quite handsome. He and Allison could pass for siblings.

"Jonny," he said, extending a hand sheathed in a black glove.

I shook it hesitantly. They were all wearing black and what looked like the same leather jacket. I found that kind of strange but, then again, I wasn't the best person to decide what's strange or not.

The other guy was taller than me, but not by much. He was burly, though. Not steroid-burly, but big all the same. His hair was buzzed onto his head and his eyes were brown. What struck me most about him was the scar running down his cheek, and the fact that I'd never seen him around school.

"Dylan," he said gruffly, not offering to shake my hand and giving me only a small nod in recognition before turning back to Allison. "Found a light?"

Before Allison could answer, the tall one – Jonny – looked back at me. "Wait… aren't you the Swan girl?" They all looked at him confused. "As in, the chief of police's daughter?"

They all looked back at me. Somehow, I understood that however I conducted myself during this confrontation would dictate my standing with these strangers and, for some reason, I wanted their approval.

"Yeah, but me and my dad don't talk much…"

"Daddy issues?" Allison asks playfully. "We'll get along perfectly!" She turned back to Jonny. "No lighter. We'll have to march our butts back to your house."

"You're useless," Jonny said.

She didn't seem to take that as the insult it sounded like. "You're an idiot for forgetting your lighter, dickhead."

I flinched. They collectively began walking towards the center of the parking lot. I stood in place, not daring to step out of line and follow them.

I noticed that each of their jackets had the same graphic printed on the back. A flaming rose and just above that, the words _Wildfire._ I furrowed my brow. Was that their band or something?

Jonny seemed to notice my absence first.

"Isn't she coming?" he asked Allison, who stopped dead and turned back to me.

"Bella! We're going to Jonny's place! You're welcome to come!"

She winked and continued walking. What do I do? I _should_ be walking through the school doors, apologizing profusely for being late and getting to class. That would be that right thing to do. That was the Bella thing to do.

But I didn't want to be that person anymore. I made a promise to myself and I intended to keep it.

I quickly caught up to my very new 'friends' as they were jumping into an old Toyota. I joined Allison as she jumped into the back.

"Welcome," she laughed.

The rest of the drive was silent, but it was anything but quick. Jonny lived on the west side of Forks, about forty minutes from the school at normal speed, but we got there in fifteen. It was the middle of the day, so no traffic. He sped through the empty roads like it was a video game while I clutched my seat in fear.

When we finally got to his house, Dylan was the first to get out. The neighbourhood wasn't the best, but his house seemed okay.

"Are your parents home?" I whispered as we got out.

The last thing I needed was someone's parents calling Charlie on me.

"Parents?" He chuckled. "Nah, I guess you could say they're on vacation…"

"And have been for about three years," Allison griped.

"Are you guys… related?" I asked, following Allison to the door.

She burst into laughter. "Oh please! Don't insult me!"

They were harsh towards one another. Was this how their friendship worked?

They all shrugged out of their jackets and dropped them onto the sofa by the door. The house itself was small, but decent. It wasn't filthy, as I'd expected.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw the big one lighting up what looked like a cigarette in the corner of the room.

Then, the smell hit me. That wasn't a cigarette.

"Want a hit?" Allison offered as he passed the joint to her.

I shook my head. "I don't do drugs…"

"Weed isn't a drug." Surprisingly it was Dylan who made the comment with a short laugh. "It's like a teddy bear drug. It can't hurt you."

"I've never been high before…" I insist. "I don't know how I'd react."

"That's simple," Jonny said, taking a seat on his sofa. "You'll forget about all your problems and feel on top of the world."

I sighed. I was actually becoming more and more tempted.

Allison held out the joint. "Last chance."

I hesitantly pulled it from her grip and held it between my shaking fingers. Here goes everything.

I put it between my lips and pulled in the smoke, inhaling deeply. I removed it in a fit of coughs, sputtering as my throat burned. I felt Allison take it from me and my hand went to my chest.

"It always happens," she said… comfortingly? "You'll get used to it."

Did I even want to get used to it?

A took a seat on the other end off the couch, away from Jonny, as they continued smoking. It only took a few moments before the drugs started having an effect. I felt a little dizzy at first… then the nausea set in. However, it wasn't an uncomfortable feeling.

"Want the last hit, Bella?" Allison asked, stepping forward and handing me the small stub.

I nodded, more enthusiastic now. This time, I pulled deeper and held it in a little longer before the coughing fit erupted. Dylan laughed a booming laugh from where he stood in the corner.

"You're gonna have to put in a lot of work with corrupting this one, Al," he joked. At least, I hoped it was a joke.

Allison laughed and came to sit between Jonny and me, grabbing both of our shoulders and pulling us in close.

"Ya know what, Bella," she said. "I like you."

I furrowed my brow. She made that statement as though she was the queen announcing a knighting. Should I feel flattered? I certainly felt uncomfortable, but the drugs offered the numbing to the burning I was so seeking so I let myself melt into that.

"Thanks… I guess…" I muttered, trying to remove myself from her grip.

Both her hands were on my shoulders now, pulling me to face her.

"You wanna be my friend, right?" she edged on.

I smiled. "Yeah. Why the hell not?"

She smirked widely and pulled me into an unexpected hug.

"We're gonna be the _best_ of friends!" she squealed.

Suddenly, Jonny's hands were on my back as he joined in on the hug.

"And I want to do both of you!"

Allison laughed and the sounds of these two people chuckling around me forced me join in.

"Come on, Dylan," Jonny said, lifting his head to look back at the large, standing man. "You know you want to…"

With the shrug of the shoulder, Dylan joined us, wrapping his buff arms securely around me.

After a moment of giggling, Allison pulled away, the others following suit.

"Now," she said, adjusting her shirt. "Down to business."

She turned her body fully towards me as if the other two guys weren't in the room. She leaned forward and looked me in the eye. It was still intimidating. The atmosphere went from fun to dense in one second flat with that look.

"Bella," she started.

"Yes…" I said softly, suddenly afraid.

"We're going out tonight. You're coming. Be ready by eight."

Then, it was over. That look left her eyes and the conversation morphed back to normal, with her and the guys making jokes and laughing.

I felt… comfortable. Like I could listen to them joke around for hours and not get sick of it. Jonny and Allison seemed like nice people… I want sure about Dylan yet. Maybe his muscles made me even more afraid of him.

Either way, I was numb and actually having fun. I'd do anything to preserve this feeling. Every now and again Allison would shoot me a look. All I could do was laugh and nervously shuffle my feet.

These were my new friends, clearly. And I was happy about that. It was enough. It was a change. It was everything I needed.


End file.
